The sails always seems to be somewhat parallel to the direction of the boat, but if the wind is blowing sideways, should that push the boat off course?
In: 9
It does push the boat off course slightly over longer distances but that can be counteracted by how you turn the boat. The boat hull is designed in such a way that there’s a lot less resistance between the hull and water for the boat to go forward than there is for it to be going sideways. That means that even if the wind is blowing at an angle from the side and not directly behind, the special shape of the sail can convert most of that energy into forward momentum. In fact most sailboats sail the fastest with a wind at an angle, since if the wind is directly behind you you might think that that would be the fastest but that also means your sail creates the most drag since it has to be completely perpendicular to the direction you’re moving.
The sails always seems to be somewhat parallel to the direction of the boat, but if the wind is blowing sideways, should that push the boat off course?
In: 9
It does push the boat off course slightly over longer distances but that can be counteracted by how you turn the boat. The boat hull is designed in such a way that there’s a lot less resistance between the hull and water for the boat to go forward than there is for it to be going sideways. That means that even if the wind is blowing at an angle from the side and not directly behind, the special shape of the sail can convert most of that energy into forward momentum. In fact most sailboats sail the fastest with a wind at an angle, since if the wind is directly behind you you might think that that would be the fastest but that also means your sail creates the most drag since it has to be completely perpendicular to the direction you’re moving.
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